Raschel Heartsong
Raschel Heartsong, is the current Paladin of Djose Temple: a most honorable title, or so the priesthood would claim. For ever since Ixion established a bond with the young woman, she has begun to feel that she's agonizingly slowly losing herself to the gentle hymn of the Fayth, like a song constantly playing in the back of her head. Now that she has been branded by Ixion, she finds herself unable to resist the pull of the events as she is expected to join the recently accepted Summoner, Jared Lothian on a pilgrimage to defeat Sin as one of his Guardians. However, Raschel is a woman who has been indoctrinated well by the belief in Yevon; and she meekly accepts her place and destiny even while she grits her teeth in frustration at her situation. Nevertheless though, her strength of character and her conviction will likely only serve to urge her onward, as she is a woman whose inner strength is likely to overcome most obstacles in her path. Appearance Personality Having been raised to become a priestess in the Temple of Djose by her devout Yevonite parents, Raschel displays tendencies common to those whom have been thrust into a religion from an early age, raised to unquestioningly follow the strict beliefs of Yevon; all in an attempt to attempt to atone for humanities ever-existent sins. Yet whom, due to their identities and their upbringing nonetheless cling to it. Like most other residents of Spira, Raschel is a devout Yevonite, forsaking technology and progress and willing to give her all towards purifying the world of Spira and its inhabitants in the desire to banish Sin once and for all. Due to being a former priestess of Djose Temple, Raschel follows a strict doctrine and is highly critical of anyone who doesn't abide the scriptures and teachings of Yevon, considering them to be dragging the rest of the world down with them. Her adherence to Yevon might come off as unbearable or insufferable at times, as she's often willing to lecture people she meets about why they should adhere to the doctrine. However, while she does everything expected of a Yevonite, and does it well, Raschel does indeed harbor second thoughts about her own religion as she, being the choosen host of Ixion himself. Has to constantly struggle to maintain her individuality in the face of the supernatural being that inhabits her. As the Fayth gradually removes her memories and inserts its own in their place, eventually, Raschel knows that the woman "Raschel Heartsong" will cease to exist and the Fayth of Ixion would fully integrate her into its being and take full possession of her body. Despite all of these things, Raschel is a strong and independent woman who wishes to make the most of the life she has already been given, accepting that while she fears what ineviteably is to come, she cannot fight it and must instead focus on what else that matters. Thus she's devoted herself to the Pilgrimage of her Summoner: hoping for the chance to be choosen as the Fayth of his Final Aeon - reckoning that if it occurs, she can simultaneously give Spira hope and perish as Raschel Heartsong. Thus not losing herself to the Fayth as would otherwise be her fate. Usually, Raschel displays a rather logical and no-nonsense persona, being a woman with very little humor and an overarching desire to do things the right way. She comes off as cold, down-to-earth and critical of others, particularily those whom for whatever reason try to be witty, as she finds nothing humurous about the current predicament of the world, existing in the terror of Sin, or her own condition. Therefore, Raschel is the first to berate or reprimand others for any flaws they may have, and is likewise also the first to come up with valid strategies and courses of actions developed with cold logic and from raw experience and skill. Despite her at times insufferable and even condescending tone and behaviour, Raschel is also a very loyal woman who is willing to protect and help her friends and fellow humans in any way she knows how, reasoning that she has nothing to lose by being the best person she can be. For this reason, Raschel is very adamant about not leaving anyone behind, not even if she happens to depise the person, and is likewise against killing anyone but fiends - although she's willing to fight off anyone to guard her Summoner. Background Abilities As the Paladin of Ixion, the Aeon of Lightning - Raschel possesses many traits and abilities which are beyond that of ordinary humans. The physical attributes she possesses are known to oftentimes be greater than those of actual athletes whom have trained progressively to become excellent in a specific field. This is because Raschel, after being choosen by Ixion is no longer human in the normal sense of the word, as she's always carrying around a large piece of the Aeon inside her and its presence greatly enhances her abilities. High Aether Capacity: As a Paladin, bonded with a powerful Aeon - Raschel's capacity to use Aether was greatly enhanced and its considered to be greater than that of most trained Magi. This is a necessity for it allows her to wield the powers of Ixion in battle, which would be impossible for anyone below a certain level of capacity. However, her reserves are mostly untapped and raw and its largely impossible for her to use any form of magic or magical ability not associated with Ixion; as all she's doing while using magic in combat is merely borrowing upon the Aeon's own potential. Enhanced Strength: All Paladins are gifted with heightened physical abilities based upon the Aeon of the Fayth which inhabits them. In Raschel's case, she's been granted great physical strength, allowing her inflict lethal damage on both human and fiends alike barehanded, crushing bones merely by the force of her unarmed strikes. With some efforts, Raschel is capable of lifting objects many times her own weight and throw them considerable distances, or alternatively move them out of the way to unveil hidden paths and routes. While wielding the Horn of Ixion, the magical properties of the weapon similarily enhances raw force she can produce with each swing, allowing her to inflict mortal blows on even the toughest and most resilent of fiends when everything else but magical might would normally suffice otherwise. While wielding the weapon, Raschel has been known strike the ground hard enough to create small craters where the head of the weapon made contact and lesser fiends stand no chance at even surviving a single blow from the mighty weapon. Enhanced Durability: In addition to possessing strength which can only be described as superhuman, Rachel was also gifted with the ability to withstand blows which would normally injure any ordinary human and emerge entirely unscathed, blades not of magical nature cannot penetrate her skin or even scratch her and most standard bludgeoing weapons are likewise unable to harm her. Only the Machina-weapons of the Al Bhed are capable of harming her without the use of magic, and those weapons only inflict minor puncture wounds whereas they might easily kill any other human. The reason that Raschel and other Paladins are harder to injure than other humans and Al Abassi, is because when they've bonded with an Aeon their bodies are sorrounded by invisible fields of aether which band together to form a full body barrier of energy just above their skin, which can only be disturbed or overcome by magical weapons or high-velocity piercing weaponry. Magical Resistance:' '''Paladins are bonded with a Fayth, and its presence within them is known to protect them from spells meant to affect the Paladins spirit. This makes them much less suspectible to Elder Magic, a discipline of magic which takes basis in harming the spirit of a subject to reflect that harm upon the subjects body. As the Fayth actively protects the spirit of its only host from such magical affects. Unfortunately, this is also a drawback as the Fayth is unable to see the difference between Elder Magic and White Magic, which both operate under the exact same principles - and Raschel is therefore very unresponsive to white magic and the white mage must be exceptionally skilled to be capable of doing more than heal a bruise on her body. This condition persists even after her death; and it makes it impossible to ressurect her without the use of a very powerful spell cast by a master healer. Paladin Horn of Ixion ''The weapon is unlike anything used by any military force in the world, it less resembles a tool of war than an exotic artifact. It possesses vague similarities to both a warmace and an axe, the shaft of the weapon is compromised of the purest gold and it ends in an oddly shaped double-edged blade which juts out at the right of the shaft, but which at the left size curves upward in a distinct zig-zag pattern. Its design clearly inspired by a lightning bolt. Stats